The handling of drink containers, particularly at amusement parks, carnivals, sporting events, and the like pose significant problems to the consumer. If the person is moving from one location to another and leaves the beverage behind, it becomes necessary to return to the location the beverage was left each time he or she wishes to imbibe.
In public areas (amusement parks, carnivals, etc.) the usual practice forces the consumer to hand-carry a beverage which is awkward, restrictive, and potentially messy if the beverage should spill. Hand-carrying a beverage requires the constant attention of the person carrying the beverage; therefore, the enjoyment or ability to participate in many activities is greatly diminished. Other common methods or article carrying apparatuses are not well suited for beverage carrying purposes. For example, a person may not wish to carry a can or a lidded cup in his or her clothing pocket as there may be a risk of spillage, particularly if the can has been opened or the lid on the cup is not securely fastened. A person may also not wish to carry the beverage in a purse, backpack, or the like, or article carriers of this kind may be too full to accommodate a beverage container.
The patent literature describes a number of clothes-attachable holders that are used to hold a variety of items. For example, a device described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,708,273, issued on Nov. 24, 1987 to B. T. Grant, is capable of carrying an open beverage container on a person's belt. The device comprises a structure for receiving an open drink container in a supporting relationship so that the container is maintained in a substantially upright condition and can be withdrawn to consume a drink therein; and a structure for attaching said container receiving structure to a belt. The container receiving structure and the belt attaching structure join together as a one-piece molded structure. As such, a drawback of this device is that it is not capable of being transformed or folded up into a more portable shape or size that is more suitable for being carried in a pocket or purse.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,280,870 issued on Jan. 25, 1994 to A. L. Chick describes a holder for a beverage container including a vertical back plate having arms for engaging the side wall of a beverage container, a hinged base member pivotally attached to the back plate and including a base plate and first and second sidewalls attached to the base plate, and a collapsible bracket which can be engaged with the base member in an upright position or stored within the holder when in its collapsed configuration.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,944,238 issued on Aug. 31, 1999 to H. V. Stark describes a clothes-attachable beverage can holder comprising an open fronted holder body with a vertically extending back portion and a horizontal base portion on which a can may be rested. A pair of resilient arms extend from the back portion to clasp the can and have spaced apart front ends forming a gap into which a can may be forced by an at least partially sidewise movement of the can. A lid attached to the holder by a flexible lid retainer has a circular lip proportioned to snap engage on the top of a beverage can and acts to seal the opened can.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,457,616 issued on Oct. 1, 2002 to R. G. Gagne discloses a belt clip mounted beverage holder comprising a hands-free holder assembly which supports a beverage container in an easily accessible location. The holder assembly employs a spring loaded clip to fasten and secure the body portion of the holder to a person's belt or waistband. A pivotally mounted bracket disposed near the base of the body portion receives a beverage container. The bracket is designed to assume a pendular motion which allows the wearer of the holder assembly to move about in an unrestricted manner.
U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2007/0090136 published on Apr. 26, 2007 to J. D. Stowell discloses a belt buckle incorporating a collapsible cup holder, wherein the cup holder is hidden in the passive configuration, the belt buckle having a cover member that pivots downward to form a base to support a beverage container, and a retainer that pivots up to retain the body of the beverage container.
A drawback of known body supported beverage container carrying devices is that the more rugged devices capable of supporting larger containers are not easily stored when not in use, and therefore are in some cases nearly as inconvenient to hold or carry when not in use as a beverage container. On the other hand, collapsible beverage container carrying devices are generally of a rather inadequate construction for supporting the weight of larger containers filled with a liquid beverage. For example, an average sized beverage holder or cup holds between sixteen and sixty-four ounces. Thirty two ounces of water weighs about 4.17 pounds, all of which weight typically is supported on a bottom support panel, which places a great deal of stress on the hinge or connection means between the bottom support panel and a back panel. What is needed therefore is a beverage container holder having a reinforced base portion suited for repeatedly supporting the weight of large drinks or beverage containers that is also foldable into a compact configuration and can be easily carried in a standard size pocket or purse when not in use.